Instant coffee is easy to make, and as the name suggests, it can be made quickly. Some people say that instant coffee is bad for you. We will discuss, is instant coffee bad for you? I searched for the answer and found a few valid reasons why it is touted as bad.
Is instant coffee bad for you?
This coffee can be good as well as bad. It is considered bad because it contains a higher acrylamide amount ( 100% more than roasted coffee). If you are a coffee aficionado, you may not feel the same taste and flavor profiles as espresso, french press, or other traditional coffee brewing methods.
Instant coffee is convenient and easy to make. But it has been the subject of many health-related debates over the years. One such debate is whether instant coffee is bad for you.
Before we answer this question, let’s first ask what chemicals are in it? The typical major chemicals that can be found in instant coffee include polyphenols, caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, and quinides.
There have not been any conclusive studies suggesting that drinking instant coffee can cause cancer or other diseases; however, there are some theories about why people should avoid it if they want to live a healthy life:
The taste profile of instant coffee is different from espresso or french press coffee.
The short-cut method of making coffee can save you 5 minutes from your day but if you want to taste the real coffee, go for espresso, drip, or any other method of brewing your cup. It takes only 5 minutes to prepare a cup of coffee. I spend around 10 minutes making two cups of masala tea. Coffee is always ready in half of that time.
I always prefer to make coffee whenever I am in a hurry. I love to make my own cup of tea once a day.
Why this coffee is bad for you
There are a few reasons for considering it bad.
1. Presence of acrylamide
Acrylamide is the chemical produced in coffee when coffee beans are roasted. Instant coffee contains twice the amount of acrylamide as freshly brewed coffee.
Higher amounts of Acrylamide are known to affect the nervous system and cause cancer.
The amount of acrylamide in instant coffee is considered safe, but drinking too much can have adverse effects.
2. Less caffeine
This is not directly related to health issues, but if you need higher amounts of caffeine to wake you up, you will need more cups, leading to a higher amount of caffeine and acrylamide.
This coffee contains higher levels of acrylamide which is a carcinogen and increases the risk of certain cancers. Acrylamide can be found in smoking products, potatoes, french fries, and also in instant coffee. Acrylamide is created when carbohydrate-rich foods are heated at high temperatures.
Many studies have shown that people who drink more than 4 cups of coffee per day have an increased risk of certain cancers such as bladder cancer.
3. Taste is not the same
If you have never tested the coffee prepared by other methods, you may not feel any difference, but if you love to drink coffee made through traditional methods, you will miss that taste profile.
This coffee tastes bland, and flavors are also not as good as other coffee methods.
Origin
Alphonse Allais patented instant coffee in 1881 in France. In 1890, David Strang of Newzealand patented and sold Instant coffee under Strange’s Coffee’s name, citing the process as ‘Dry, hot air process.’
In 1901, a Chicago-based chemist of Japanese descent, Dr. Srtori Kato, applied for a patent for “Coffee concentrate process and making the same.” e was granted the patent on August 11, 1903. Mass production of instant coffee started in 1910 to use the coffee for soldiers.
Is instant coffee the same as ground coffee?
No, this coffee is not the same as ground coffee. The process of roasting, brewing produces instant coffee and drying the coffee beans. Dehydrating the mixture of coffee and water produces the crystals of coffee, making an instant coffee cup when remixed with water.
When you simply grind coffee means, ground coffee is made. You can use powdered coffee to make your instant coffee powder at home. It will not dissolve properly in water, and you have to filter it or sip the coffee without sipping the last sip.
Is instant coffee full of chemicals?
Ready to prepare coffee has a higher amount of acrylamide, which is considered harmful to the human body. It is said that this coffee contains almost double the amount of acrylamide.
What to do instead?
If you think that you don’t have time to make your cup of coffee in the morning, keep your coffee grounds ready to make your cup of coffee.
If your coffee powder is ready, you can dissolve that powder in your cup quickly. Coffee contains both dissolvable as well as non-dissolving components.
How to prepare ground coffee at home?
To avoid sipping non-dissolving compounds, don’t sip the last sip from the bottom of the cup. It will taste bitter and ruin the taste.
